Abstract
We report the isolation and preliminary characterization of BTF-37, a new 52-kb transfer factor isolated from Bacteroides fragilis clinical isolate LV23. BTF-37 was obtained by the capture of new DNA in the nonmobilizable Bacteroides-Escherichia coli shuttle vector pGAT400ΔBglII using a functional assay. BTF-37 is self-transferable within and from Bacteroides and also self-transfers in E. coli. Partial DNA sequencing, colony hybridization, and PCR revealed the presence of Tet element-specific sequences in BTF-37. In addition, Tn5520, a small mobilizable transposon that we described previously (G. Vedantam, T. J. Novicki, and D. W. Hecht, J. Bacteriol. 181:2564-2571, 1999), was also coisolated within BTF-37. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy of Tet element-containing Bacteroides spp. and BTF-37-harboring Bacteroides and E. coli strains revealed the presence of pilus-like cell surface structures. These structures were visualized in Bacteroides spp. only when BTF-37 and Tet element strains were induced with subinhibitory concentrations of tetracycline and resembled those encoded by E. coli broad-host-range plasmids. We conclude that we have captured a new, self-transferable transfer factor from B. fragilis LV23 and that this new factor encodes a tetracycline-inducible Bacteroides sp. conjugation apparatus.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 728-738 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of Bacteriology |
| Volume | 184 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| State | Published - 2002 |
| Externally published | Yes |
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ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology
- Immunology
Cite this
Isolation and characterization of BTF-37 : Chromosomal DNA captured from Bacteroides fragilis that confers self-transferability and expresses a pilus-like structure in Bacteroides spp. and Escherichia coli. / Vedantam, Gayatri; Hecht, David W.
In: Journal of Bacteriology, Vol. 184, No. 3, 2002, p. 728-738.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Isolation and characterization of BTF-37
T2 - Chromosomal DNA captured from Bacteroides fragilis that confers self-transferability and expresses a pilus-like structure in Bacteroides spp. and Escherichia coli
AU - Vedantam, Gayatri
AU - Hecht, David W.
PY - 2002
Y1 - 2002
N2 - We report the isolation and preliminary characterization of BTF-37, a new 52-kb transfer factor isolated from Bacteroides fragilis clinical isolate LV23. BTF-37 was obtained by the capture of new DNA in the nonmobilizable Bacteroides-Escherichia coli shuttle vector pGAT400ΔBglII using a functional assay. BTF-37 is self-transferable within and from Bacteroides and also self-transfers in E. coli. Partial DNA sequencing, colony hybridization, and PCR revealed the presence of Tet element-specific sequences in BTF-37. In addition, Tn5520, a small mobilizable transposon that we described previously (G. Vedantam, T. J. Novicki, and D. W. Hecht, J. Bacteriol. 181:2564-2571, 1999), was also coisolated within BTF-37. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy of Tet element-containing Bacteroides spp. and BTF-37-harboring Bacteroides and E. coli strains revealed the presence of pilus-like cell surface structures. These structures were visualized in Bacteroides spp. only when BTF-37 and Tet element strains were induced with subinhibitory concentrations of tetracycline and resembled those encoded by E. coli broad-host-range plasmids. We conclude that we have captured a new, self-transferable transfer factor from B. fragilis LV23 and that this new factor encodes a tetracycline-inducible Bacteroides sp. conjugation apparatus.
AB - We report the isolation and preliminary characterization of BTF-37, a new 52-kb transfer factor isolated from Bacteroides fragilis clinical isolate LV23. BTF-37 was obtained by the capture of new DNA in the nonmobilizable Bacteroides-Escherichia coli shuttle vector pGAT400ΔBglII using a functional assay. BTF-37 is self-transferable within and from Bacteroides and also self-transfers in E. coli. Partial DNA sequencing, colony hybridization, and PCR revealed the presence of Tet element-specific sequences in BTF-37. In addition, Tn5520, a small mobilizable transposon that we described previously (G. Vedantam, T. J. Novicki, and D. W. Hecht, J. Bacteriol. 181:2564-2571, 1999), was also coisolated within BTF-37. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy of Tet element-containing Bacteroides spp. and BTF-37-harboring Bacteroides and E. coli strains revealed the presence of pilus-like cell surface structures. These structures were visualized in Bacteroides spp. only when BTF-37 and Tet element strains were induced with subinhibitory concentrations of tetracycline and resembled those encoded by E. coli broad-host-range plasmids. We conclude that we have captured a new, self-transferable transfer factor from B. fragilis LV23 and that this new factor encodes a tetracycline-inducible Bacteroides sp. conjugation apparatus.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0036174852&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0036174852&partnerID=8YFLogxK
M3 - Article
C2 - 11790742
AN - SCOPUS:0036174852
VL - 184
SP - 728
EP - 738
JO - Journal of Bacteriology
JF - Journal of Bacteriology
SN - 0021-9193
IS - 3
ER -